MSU NOTEBOOK: Point guard Ready planning to play

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State point guard I.J. Ready plans to be back on the floor for Wednesday’s game with Georgia.

Ready missed Friday’s practice and the Kentucky game the following day with a 103-degree fever. The freshman went through the shootaround with the team but was too ill to participate and watched the game from the training room.

A test by team physician Mike Mabry came back negative for the flu, although Ready suffered from many of the same symptoms.

“I’m over my fever now but I’m still kind of sick and not feeling like myself,” Ready said Monday afternoon. “I just have to keep taking my medicines, keep drinking fluids and just practice and do whatever the trainers and doctors tell me to do so I can get back to myself and help my team out. That’s all I want to do.”

It was the seventh game that the 5-foot-11, 165-pounder from Little Rock, Ark., has missed. Ready has started 14 of 16 games this season averaging 6.4 points and 3.1 assists per game.

Getting adjusted

Amid all the injuries and attrition during Rick Ray’s initial season last year was disciplinary action that had to be taken as well.

Ray booted Kristers Zeidaks and Shaun Smith prior to last season for a violation of team rules and had to suspend three different players – Jalen Steele, Colin Borchert and Roquez Johnson – for three games each during the year.

Wendell Lewis was kicked off the team prior to this season due to a violation of team rules.

But since the season started, those distractions have been minimal. Sophomore guard Fred Thomas was suspended for the season opener against Prairie View A&M by the NCAA for participating in a charity basketball game over the summer.

“I don’t think it’s them getting adjusted to me but getting adjusted to college basketball,” Ray said. “You have expectations for your guys and you expect them to meet those expectations. I think our guys have done a good job identifying what they should and should not be doing.”

Weather permitting

Wednesday’s home game against Georgia is slated for an 8:04 p.m. tipoff on FSN.

Inclement weather is expected throughout the region, but the game is still scheduled to take place.

“(Athletic director Scott Stricklin) says he’s going to get with his people,” Ray said. “I think it has a lot to do with TV as well, too. I don’t think it’s totally in our control. The biggest thing is the safety issue. He’s going to figure that stuff out and then he’s going to come back to me with it. I don’t want to help devise the contingency plan.”